Fizzy extraction brings out semivolatile compounds

When Pawel L. Urban cracked open a soda on the beach in southern Taiwan last summer, he suddenly became aware of the soda’s aroma wafting up to his nose. The analytical chemist from National Chiao Tung University thought that if carbon dioxide bubbles could bring out the soda’s aroma molecules, perhaps that same idea could be applied in the lab to do chemical extraction.

Now, Urban has done just that, reporting a new technique to extract semivolatile compounds from liquids based on the phenomenon of effervescence (Anal. Chem. 2016, DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.6b02074). The technique, which Pawel dubs “fizzy extraction,” operates at room temperature and provides sample analysis within seconds of bubble formation.

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If XiaoZhi is too difficult for you to say, just call me X. I am a freelance science reporter currently based in Massachusetts. I enjoy covering energy, climate, environment and basic science. I'm originally from Singapore.

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